


rise and blossom on the green turf

by sunsetmagnolia



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: I know hyacinthus dies in the myth but I can't write that so everyone lives, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:07:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25189960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunsetmagnolia/pseuds/sunsetmagnolia
Summary: As the god Apollo loved sweet Spartan Hyacinthus, modern love stories are not quite so... epic.
Relationships: Michael Clifford/Calum Hood
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	rise and blossom on the green turf

**Author's Note:**

> Title taken from a translation of a Roman epic from around 1 century BCE because I'm a nerd.

_Apollo sits under a tree, plucking his lyre sweetly as a breeze rolls over the hills. The flowers bend to his song and the sun itself bows to its keeper's tune, a melody both old as the world itself and brand new, like the dew still settled on the morning grass._

Michael sat cross legged on his bed, guitar in his lap, trying his hardest to write something that didn’t feel like everything else he’d ever written. He could almost hear a logical voice in his head telling him he should maybe leave his room if he wants to have new experiences to write about, but that would mean going outside. He leaned over to peek out the window and was nearly blinded by the bright sunlight. No, going outside was gonna have to wait for a less offensively sunny day.

_The wind whispers to look over the fields, to where a group of young men pass a discus between them, running and laughing. Apollo easily finds his favorite, by far the most talented, the most handsome, the most humble, and most importantly the most graciously accepting of the god's every praise laid unto his ears. Apollo watches for a few minutes, waits until the perfect moment to greet his beloved Hyacinthus._

If he was forced to go to school, the least he could do is hide out in a music room, but no, he got caught which meant he was outside eating lunch with everyone else. Of course, no one else looked nearly as resigned to being there as he felt. He was distracted from his misery by a familiar voice yelling at him to look out, and next thing he knew a soccer ball landed squarely in his lap. Michael looked up, amazed that he wasn’t hurt, and into the face of the cutest boy in his class jogging over to him and then reaching his hands out for the ball. “Sorry mate, my friend has terrible aim. Michael, right?” Michael handed it to him, trying not to be shocked that he knew his name. “I’m Calum.”

“School playmaker, I know,” Michael said, not knowing where his confidence was coming from to even carry on a conversation. “How do you know my name?”

Calum gave him a weird look. “We’ve been in the same class since we were 6, I think I’d know your name by now.”

“But you introduced yourself to me?”

“I was being polite,” Calum laughed lightly. Michael had to pause and make sure he wasn’t staring at him in awe. “Sorry again about the ball. Do you want to join us?”

“I’m shit at sports,” Michael said truthfully.

“Maybe I could teach you sometime?” Calum tossed the ball and caught it a couple times while Michael gathered enough sense to make a sound of agreement. With a grin, Calum was off to rejoin his friends.

_Apollo approaches his love with a smile so dazzling it could only belong to the god of the sun. The rest of the group has moved on for the afternoon but Hyacinthus waits for the man he saw up on the hill. They greet each other warmly, as if they haven’t been apart considerably longer than either of them would have liked, before starting a game, the god using his power to show off just enough to make the man laugh, a sound like music to his ears._

The next day, Michael was once again sitting on the ground being upset that he had no excuse to not be at school when Calum appeared next to him as if by magic. “You ready to learn?” Calum asked, reaching a hand out to Michael.

“I’m telling you I suck,” Michael said, more to save face than to turn down the offer as he found himself taking Calum’s hand and pulling himself up to stand.

“How about we trade, I’ll teach you soccer and you can teach me guitar?” Calum was smiling, raising his eyebrows in a hopeful way that made Michael not want to ask how he knew he played guitar or why he assumed Michael was good enough to teach him.

“Okay,” Michael said instead, and let Calum lead him through the gate into the schoolyard, to the part of the grass closest to the soccer goal.

_Hyacinthus runs and catches and throws in between laughter and jokes between the two, letting Apollo both show off and shower him in praise. Apollo watches as the god of the west wind shifts the trajectory of the discus ever so slightly, giving him enough time to course correct before the discus lands somewhere unsavory. Suddenly Apollo is in a silent battle of jealousy, for Zephyrus wants the mortal's attention too, and wants to stop at nothing to be rid of the god who stands between them. Apollo’s eyes are drawn to Hyacinthus for a moment too long and Zephyrus moves the wind just to the left, and the discus lands a blow on his forehead like none a mortal man could have thrown._

Michael was content with standing just far enough away from Calum that kicking the ball back and forth felt like some form of practice, but close enough that they could talk without yelling, and close enough that it was clear to everyone else that they were hanging out by choice. Calum’s regular lunchtime friends were in a circle further down the field. Michael had no reason to believe their laughs had anything to do with him, but he could see perfectly well that they kept turning around to glance at him and Calum, and insecurity bit at his insides. They continued to pass the ball between them, mostly ignoring everyone else, until one laugh was so jarringly loud in Michael’s ears that he kicked the ball a little too hard, and with absolutely no aim, and watched, eyes wide, as it flew up just high enough to hit Calum in the stomach, making him double over and making the other group turn back around as if they hadn’t been watching it happen.

_Zephyrus leaves as soon as he sees he’s gone too far, and Apollo rushes to his lover's side, using all his healing power to close the small wound that lay open on his forehead. He sings a quiet song as Hyacinthus awakes, and where his blood has dropped onto the earth, Apollo sprouts a flower, pink and red and bright._

Michael’s eyes widened impossibly. “Oh my god I’m so sorry!”

Calum looked up like he was dying but also trying not to laugh. “I’m fine,” he said, dramatically reaching out for Michael, who held out a hand to help Calum catch his balance.

“Are you sure? I wasn’t paying attention and I shouldn’t have kicked it that hard and I told you I was shit—”

Calum put some weight on Michael's arm, leaning into his side with an arm still cradling his middle. “I should have listened to you,” he said, starting to laugh and then stopping, whining about how it hurt too much.

“Do you- do you need something? Ice? A new stomach?”

“Stop making me laugh,” Calum replied, somehow chuckling while Michael felt like he might pass out himself. “I just gotta sit for a minute. I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Michael asked again, leaning over to help Calum sit in the grass before sitting next to him. He picked a tiny flower from the ground beside him.

“You know what would help? You singing me something.”

Michael looked over to see Calum looking up at him, feigning innocence. “How do you even know I can sing? Maybe I suck at that too?”

“You're always up in the music room, I’ve heard you singing. Don’t get all embarrassed about it,” he said, lightly pushing against Michael's shoulder. “You’re pretty good.”

Michael tried to fight off the blush that was surely rising on his face. “I don’t have my guitar with me.”

“I guess you’ll have to sing for me when you’re teaching me guitar, then.” Calum gave him a hopeful smile, and Michael couldn’t help but smile back.


End file.
